Kremlin Reiterates Russia Is Not Thinking About Using Nuclear Power, But Is Ready To Prevent And Punish Those Who Interfere In Ukraine

JAKARTA - The Kremlin has reiterated that it will not use nuclear weapons as many have feared, even though it says it is ready to prevent other parties from interfering in the Ukraine issue.

Speaking to PBS, Kremlin spokesman Dmytry Peskov again revealed that no one in Russia is thinking about using nuclear weapons.

Answering the question whether Russian President Vladimir White had mentioned in previous statements that he would use nuclear weapons if a third party were to become involved in the conflict in Ukraine, Peskov said, "no," according to TASS March 29.

"I don't think so. But he (President Putin) has stressed, don't interfere, if you do, we have every possibility to prevent it and punish everyone who will interfere," Peskov said.

When asked if he could rule out the use of nuclear weapons in a conflict on Russia's behalf, he said, "No one has thought of using, not even the idea of using nuclear weapons."

In addition to the use of nuclear weapons, Peskov also responded to questions about US President Joe Biden's comments on President Putin last weekend.

"This is quite worrying. First of all, this is a personal insult and one cannot imagine a place for personal insult, in the rhetoric of a political leader and especially the political leader of the greatest country in the world, the United States of America. So we deeply regret that," he stressed.

"His statement about whether Putin should not or should be in power in Russia is of course unacceptable. It is not the President of the United States who decides, who will be and who is president of Russia, but the Russian people who decide, decide during the election," Peskov said.

As for the barrage of sanctions by Western countries that had an impact on the economy, Peskov said they had declared total economic war against Russia.

"We had to adjust to the new conditions. And unfortunately, the conditions were quite unfriendly," he said, commenting on Western sanctions.

"We are entering a phase of total war. The countries of Western Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, they are actually leading the war against us in trade, in the economy, in seizing our property, in seizing our funds, in blocking our financial relations. And we have to adapt to this situation, to a new reality."